Computer Networks are gaining foothold in the home. Today home networks are used mainly to connect multiple computers to the Internet. The anticipation is, however, that home networks will soon be used for a variety of new applications. Several networking options are available to the consumer: Ethernet, Wireless technologies (802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11 g, BlueTooth), HPNA (Home Phone line Networks), Home Plug (Electrical wiring) and lately even cable coax networking. Prices are falling and penetration of networks into the home is dramatically increasing.
One use of home networking will certainly be for entertainment. The connected home will enable a variety of new capabilities such as streaming music from a storage location in the home (or the Internet) to anywhere in the house. Likewise, home networks will allow any television receiver in the home to view any content available anywhere in the house (or accessible through the Internet/Cable/Satellite).
The connected home may include multiple servers and thin clients. The major function of the server would be data storage and content distribution to clients. Thin clients are typically limited in functionality and lack independent storage such as a hard disk drive (HDD). Many of the consumer electronic devices around the home will become the thin clients of the future. Some consumer devices already have the ability to read Flash cards directly. For example, one can find a Flash card interface in DVD players. This feature allows the user watch either pictures or movies directly from a digital camera without the need to download the Flash card data to a PC, burn it into a CD and only then watch it on the TV.
It may be desirable for the information used by the thin client to be permanently retained for future use without the inconvenience of “going” to the server connecting a USB (or similar) cord to the PC and downloading the data into its designated database.